BL: College Basketball Scandal… “like a hooker stealing your wallet”

College Basketball Scandal… “like a hooker stealing your wallet”

So this jamoke is traveling on business and encounters a “working girl” in the Ramada Inn lounge. Blah blah yadda yadda… and he wakes up the next morning and “she” and his wallet are both gone. He calls the police and wants to file a report that “a hooker stole my wallet”.

Officer O’Malley asks “did you know she was a hooker?” “Sure” said jamoke… “but I didn’t think she would steal my wallet”. “That’s what hookers do, sir” … “OK, so what do you suggest I do now?” … “Tell your wife you left it (the wallet) in a cab.” …

If “your school” is competitive in Big Time College Basketball… getting your wallet stolen is inevitable… figuratively speaking.

All you have to remember is…

Every School Cheats…. EXCEPT “your school”.

I could reuse “marrying a stripper” for this latest College Athletics Scandal. That one worked really well with a previous “OMG… college athletics is a REALLY REALLY dirty business…” involving The Butcher of Kenan. Then I could be accused of being a creature of habit.

Unlike everybody else on the Internet I do not know how devastating this current SCANDAL epidemic will be… Nor do I have a solution for it. OK… yes, I do; but I’m not giving it away free here.

“Cleaning up college sports” is even more impossible than “draining the DC Swamp”.

No one really cares if College Sports is “cleaned up”.

They just want their hated rival’s program reduced to a pile of rubble.

If you think “just pay the players” will solve anything… you probably think Enterprise Rent-A-Car deleting 50% of their client base will stop crazy SOBs from doing evil things to children and other innocent people.

RELAX… This is NOT going to be a Gun Column.

FWIW… I don’t have a solution to THAT issue either. But everyone else on Twitter and Facebook does. Pick the ones that agree with your pre-conceived notion and dismiss anyone who doesn’t agree with you as being “idiots”. You probably already do that. I certainly do. …. Oh, and No, I am not a member of NRA … or The Rams Club or The Wolfpack Club or The Iron Dukes. I’m not a “joiner” kinda guy.

Never forget why we all come to the Internet… to hopefully find a few people almost as smart and intuitive as we are. Most days, alas, we don’t.

OK, back to College Basketball Scandal. My best guess on how devastating will this be is…

In addition to Sean Miller, there will be 3-4 lesser names (who cares?) “do the perp walk”. Maybe one more Big Name. There WILL be a March Madness.

Arizona cannot fire Sean Miller “for cause” but CAN fire him “just because…”. Don’t waste time thinking about it. We are officially “down the rabbit hole”. Making sense is the last thing anyone wants to do.

Right now there are Fat Cats in Tucson AZ saying EXACTLY what Fat Cats at UNCCH and Louisville said when it was their turn in The IR.

“IR” is NCIS lingo for Interrogation Room. Gray metal desk, two chairs and that big mirror that even Roy knows is a one-way glass. Roy DOES know that doesn’t he. Does Roy watch NCIS? Kirschner better tell him just in case…

Jethro Gibbs Rule #14: Never Interrupt Gibbs When he is doing an interrogation..

Fat Cats / Admins at Louisville did finally “grow a pair”. Fat Cats/Admins at UNCCH… well you know how that went down.

There is a manual called The Official What To Say When No One Is Going To Believe Anything You Say Anyway.

The foreward in that manual was co-written by John Gotti and Bernie Madoff.

There is a version for Big Time coaches… one for Fat Cats… and one for Univ Administrators. No one bothered to write one for “board monkeys” because no one but other board monkeys pay them any attention.

PLEASE tell me you are NOT reading board monkey fecal flingings about any of this. Have I not taught you anything in 20+ years? You are reading the equivalent of bus station toilet stall walls.

Remember Ol’ Roy claims he never heard of Fats Thomas or Julius Nyang’oro. Chances of Roy ever hearing of these agents or their bag men are ZERO. That’s why Roy only drinks Diet Coke… it’s the only soft drink he can remember. Roy has memory issues among other issues.

Unlike Kindly Ol’ Governor Jim Martin… odds are that The FBIers WILL talk to Roy. Maybe it will be James Comey and he and Roy can swap Trump jokes. Don’t laugh… it could happen.

NOTE: How come UNC’s Brendon Haywood played in the NBA for 20 years but needed a loan from an agent weasel for a few $100 bucks? Bad investments??… or too many baby mammas ???

NC Staters are running away from Dennis Smith Jr faster than Nyheim Hines ran away from UNC DBs back in November in The Carter… and THAT was FAST!

If you are in a Scavenger Hunt at NC State and one of your items is Find a State Fan who admits he wanted Frau Yow to (1) keep Gottfried… or (2) Hire Sean Miller. Good luck with either of those.

Good thing Frau never put up a statue to Mark Gottfried outside PNC. That would be coming down faster than those UNC National Championship signs around Raleigh. … and THAT was very fast too.

I appreciate that Wuff Coach KK hasn’t been around long enough to have much of an “evidence trail” at NC State but having “Tricky Ricky” Pitino as a mentor is like being Jeffrey Dahmer’s roommate and never once asking “Yo Jeff, whats that smell?”.

Over at Cameron Indoor, Team K is having nightmares involving Myron Pigge. Nothing involving “indiscretions” by “hated Triangle-area rivals” is EVER forgotten.

Yeah, sure we dealt with Myron to get Meggette but it was just that once. … and Bill Clinton never inhaled… Obama never listened to Jeremiah Wright’s sermons… and Hillary hardly knew Vince Foster.

When it comes to circling the wagons when Scandal Clouds are hovering… the Franklin Street Gang has the advantage. They just came out of an eight-year siege. The question for UNCCH will be can they replenish their war chests with enough Fat Cat $$$ to rehire their “mob lawyers”.

This will be a fast developing story. We will do what we can to tell you what we think you need to know. In the meantime, any time Roy says anything just giggle.

Speaking of “need to know”… surely you are aware that the 12th Anniversary of The Duke Lacrosse Scandal is coming up… March 13. WHERE WERE YOU when you first heard the words… “Mike Nifong – Crystal Gail Mangum … honor student and single mother of two”?

Just the first of Oh-So-Many Triangle-area Scandals in The New Millennium. I wonder if Rielle Hunter knew Fats Thomas… or Myron Pigge? Where is “Young Marvin” these days? Speaking of “where is….” – John Blake – “Who” is no longer on the Buffalo Bills’ staff.

PS: Bre’r Kennel Update… Bre’r was sighted last week in The Kennel Seat at Doak Field yelling at the umpire. That bodes well for his returning to “normal” (?) from his heart surgery.

Sean done been vindicated and given a VOTE OF CONFIDENCE by the AZ Board of Regents (do any of the Boards – Regents, Governors, Trustee’s – non penal, etc. qualify for BM status?). They put him back on the bench and opened up his AZ.EDU Email account. He read a prepared statement and ESPN slammed THEMSELVES for reporting it, but said that it might be right all along. WOW…Jalek Felton done quit UNC for “Recruit and Favored Nephew Status Abandonment”. Kerry Sutton, leading Sexual and Innuendo and Legal Expert chastised ORW and the Blue Smurfettee….MORE to follow and Video at 11…ORW says that he hates them unsavory critters known as agents and would not let Wanda or his kids or GK’s even be in the same Zip Code with them. Wonder how the Nike folks with their connections to the Runners and Agents handled that line….probably…ORW just being ORW….or as my daddy would say about my mama when she did something so illogical that a comment was required….”She (he) DON’T KNOW….”

I hear Disney’s Bob Iger is determined to blame this latest ESPN SNAFU on Poor Addicted “Skippy” somehow although The Skipster was off rehabbing in parts unknown when all this didn’t really happen..Between “Raymond’s wayward cuzzin” and Eric Leak and Referee Valentine there is no shortage of miscreants among us… huh?

I did NOT complain about TV Teddy Valentine and Ray Ayers and their “FBI/DOJ Complicit Hatchet Job” in Atlanta. However, inside sources say that AD Yow has sent video and such to Swoff and want TV Teddy added to the Karl Hess list of approved NCSU officials. Howsomeever….there are also rumblings from the WF, Dook and UNC fans about TV Teddy. If Teddy would become an “Anyone BUT Trump” FB poster, CNN and ESPN would give him his own TV Show….You are probably only one of a few that remember, I THINK, that WRAL had a “Sports Show” hosted by Ex Ref, Lou Bello. Think what Lou could have been with today’s Social Media. Lou’s obit was interesting….and had a lot of candid comments from Bones and Dean and others.Even though Lou was a Duke Grad, he made a donation to the WPC after the 1983 run. He also followed (was recommended by) Norm Sloan to the SEC. Eventually Lou had to officiate Florida. Florida was LOUSY and was down. Lou, in Pro Quid Pro terms, managed to make calls that ended up a tied game. During the TO before the OT period, Lou came over to the Florida bench and in a stage whisper said….”Norm, I’ve done as much as I can….you’re on your own in OT. Good Luck….”. That was substantiated, supposedly, by Monte Towe….

Is there an Official List of ACC BB Refs that Wuff Fans have feuded with over the years. Not just in general but the designated “He Hates Us” guy like Valentine and Hess and… and… and… ?? Did Eve Case begin the “tradition”?

BobLee: I know someone who did marry a stripper, a young Ft. Bragg soldier. One thing that I have learned from watching Law and Order is to never invite the cops in to chat and never voluntarily go down to the station and the IR. Also, if the Duke Lacrosse incident happened today in the current environment, imagine how the media would cover it.Cliff from Fayetteville

Could it be argued that “Duke Lacrosse” signaled the beginning of the current era in which The N&O dropped any pretense of fair, unbiased journalism and simply ran roughshod over any/all “facts” that disputed their pre-selected agenda? No point/counterpoint debating… simply “THE RICH WHITE BOYS DID IT… GET A ROPE” … a style that continues 12 years later.

How ’bout we get some rules that make sense and we hire some guys without power driven egos, and we come up with serious penalties that fit the situation and we enforce them. Let those who want to go to the nba go whenever they want and we only except those to college that qualify according to the entrance standards of that university, and we tell the media and the fans this is our product, we are after all educational institutions, not entertainment conglomerates. If our product doesn’t fit your market keep searching! Why not quit trying to appease the genie and just break the damn bottle make him live in Hollywood! I know, when pigs fly!

I am 100% in favor of letting all future Lebrons and Kobes go to the NBA whenever they please. That one year rule is stoopid. THAT will take care of the Top 10 5-stars. ANY plan to tie Big Time College BB (or FB) to academics is DOOMED. Remove them completely from any association with “education versus entertainment”… MBB / FB have nothing to do with “going to school for an education”..The Official BobLee Plan is coming soon…

I’m also 100% in favor of letting the future Lebrons and Kobes go to the NBA whenever they please but the NBA has to change rules to allow it and are no obligation to bail out a mismanaged NCAA. Why would the NBA want to change anything when it has a convenient and free minor league system being operated by the NCAA?

Left a simple response on a comment below. Having sold a boat a few years ago and the buyer offered me cash, when we were doing the transaction at his Credit Union, the teller said…”No WANNA CASH….Big Time Problem….”. That got me to thinking. Given the social and financial circumstances of some of the players and their families, how did they pull off the payments?.The banks are rather sticky (thanks to Sorbanes Oxley and Dodd Frank) about huge sums or cash. It MUST be reported…and if you do frequent transactions….just UNDER the limits…the frequency, I think, must be reported. SO, how do you pay a Dennis Smith (Marvin is now viewed more fondly) $70K? How does his parents keep that amount of cash around the house without Red Reddington style security? It would seem that all the neighbors would SUSPECT it….and that SOME of the neighbors might want a piece of the action….and figure that if they helped themselves….that no one could call the cops (think….Hooker STOLE wallet)..I guess that I don’t relate to the players and their homelife situations. Maybe ORW can tell us HOW an underprivileged star BB recruit would handle the money….since he knows HOW THEY FEEL AND THINK… Maybe they got huge debit cards or credit cards or cars or whatever. SOMEBODY gotta launder that money and provide “Protection” You gotta wonder….

Mattresses?? Tomato cans in the backyard??… supposedly where Sam Snead kept his $$. Its a good question. Even if some are aware enough to hide it and use it sparingly, surely many would go immediately for bling of some sort. I, too, am not a student of modern urban financial practices. That $10,000 reporting limits is pretty strict so I suspect it does come in stacks of Benjamins… possibly in non-sequential bills.

Not remembering the specifics of the last explosion, which Person and others got caught up in, but it felt like the runners were taking a huge multiple from the shoe companies compared to what landed in the recruits or recruit’s family’s wallet. I can only guess, along with you, many, many of those Benjamins were lost out of that stack before they landed in the intended target’s hands. A long list of hangers-on likely got a small piece of those takes..Which begs my question, how much does an agent make off an athlete? Isn’t this a huge risk, paying out all sorts of seed capital, as it were, to hope you get it back in fees? My ignorance was, who is Dennis Smith? Is he generating massive shoe deals or contracts that the agent can return hundreds and hundreds of thousands in return? No good business man pays $70k out without the high chance of getting much more back in return. If he goes Joe Forte, the agent isn’t taking out a lien on his European earnings to get his dough back.

My VERY limited knowledge of The NBA says Dennis Smith is doing very well with the Dallas Mavericks. That he could “go Joe Forte” is always possible. KUDOS for even remembering Forte!.I think an authorized agent gets 10% of a negotiated contract but there are other ways for the agent to get $$$ thru the athlete. Most AfAm pro athletes have extensive “posses” who are on their payroll. Lebron’s posse is the only one that seems to have actually performed noteworthy value to the athlete. That Brendon Heywood needs a $300 loan after 15+ years in The NBA still baffles me…

Former96Heel

9 months ago

Clearly Haywood has a job waiting on him in budget management with the State. The same goobers who put up the championship sign in Raleigh would fall for it in a second, if given the opportunity.

Doug

9 months ago

And is it unrealistic to think that a university AD or a Secretary of State for that matter sending a disassociation letter to an agent makes one iota of difference other than hiding behind a statement that says “we told the agent to leave our guys alone.” It’s all a sham unless someone can convince me otherwise. Too many mamas, baby mamas, daddies, brothers, cousins, posse’s to contend with.

BobLee

9 months ago

Yep …. even less weight than a TRO to keep an angry “ex” out of one’s life. Not sure what an AD CAN do but, you’re right, “we sent him a letter” is a waste of a stamp.

Excellent piece in both form and execution. One of the Russian judges even gave you a perfect 10. These lines – there were so many- won the gold I think. “No one really cares if College Sports is “cleaned up”. They just want their hated rival’s program reduced to a pile of rubble.” Not bad at all.

Thanks. This one is scoring MUCH higher than I figured it would… which is not unusual. Three East German judges have contacted me off-line offering Kudos..My #1 Fav line was… “NC Staters are running away from Dennis Smith Jr faster than Nyheim Hines ran away from UNC DBs back in November in The Carter… and THAT was FAST!” … it kinda gigs both schools at the same time.

Great news regarding one of my favorite guys, BK. During my coaching days I loved my BK type loyalists. Never attempted to question coaching decisions, but would have monitored our immoral teachings and immoral behaviors..My first awareness of BK occurred when he commented that Coach Ev Case approached him while he was at NC State regarding checking with the great Walt Bellamy regarding Walt’s openness to matriculating at State. BIngo! I now had the name of the State athlete from New Bern whom “Uncle Ev” had entrusted the task..It was in New Castle, Indiana during the summer of 1960. We had dinner and a long talk regarding my going to Lexington to help Mr. Rupp integrate the SEC. AFR had first asked me to come down several years earlier. I was asking Coach Case’s advice regarding the feasibility of the venture. Coach Case told me the story regarding the Big Bell and his attempt to integrate the ACC and thus the South. Mr. Bob Kennell was that State athlete..A few years later, Wes Unseld told me that an ACC school had also recruited him to play in the South. He never told me who it was but he did say that it did not receive it well since his family remembered the tough treatment Oscar had received at the Dixie Classic..Since Bucky Waters was at Duke with Vic Bubas, it could have been them, or Dean Smith or even Coach Case near his end. Perhaps BK knows. Or Bucky. Dean and Ken Rosemond are gone, as is Press and Vic. That leaves BK or Bucky to answer the question for me. Who on Tobacco Road recruited Wes, one of the finer young men of whom it has been my privilege to know..As for the ridiculousness going on in sports, I voted with my feet half a century ago. Nothing has surprised me. I know that I have been blessed by taking care of my own, as have you and the vast majority of your commenters. Hello Albert, your wonderful book is on my nightstand..Why are we in this mess which goes back before WWI? Sports people chose pride over humility; covetousness over generosity; lust over chastity; gluttony over temperance; envy over brotherly love; and sloth over diligence..Did I live my life as a do-gooder. Far from it. When I first read Patrick, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas; I read that they considered themselves sinners. My conclusion was that we were all sinners..I loved to win as much as anyone, but I observed some really wrotten people in sport, some successful winners. Too many were of the ilk of today’s board-monkeys. I steered clear of the trials and tribulations of which there were many for me. In those turbulent sixties, there were many bumper stickers which stated, “I would rather be skiing” or “I would rather be sailing” or “Make love not war” or “Che is my leader” or “God is dead!’– I had one printed, “Jesus said it-I believe it – And that’s that!”.“What do you think of the horrible situation in sports today, especially basketball and football?” Whenever I am asked, my reply is the same as Tommy Lasorda gave when asked about Kingman’s home runs or “Why are you asking me, I don’t care to speak about trash or other garbage. It is depressing?”.At that time when I walked away, although there were temptations from the several NBA and several college teams of note, in years to follow, I stood fast with the words of Joshua, “Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in truth…choose you the Lord…choose you this day whom ye will serve: …but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Emily and Dan have made that choice. Good for them.

I always appreciate CNR’s history lessons. Very interesting to learn that Coach Rupp was thinking about integrating Kentucky long before Texas Western demonstrated in no uncertain terms, the advantages of doing so. Thinking back to what I have heard and read of the relationship between Coach Case and Coach Rupp and the recruiting shenanigans in that era, it seems the more things change the more they stay the same.

I had to Google the LaSorda/Kingman reference. I am guessing CNR does not respond to questions about sports today exactly the same way Tommy did when asked about Kingman’s 3 homers. Tommy was not disgusted by subject as much as he was at someone asking him a stupid question. Boy, that man can cuss.

Never known CNR to resort to “gutter talk”. If he would need to he would likely use “High Church Latin” that only The Pope or Virgil would know. I met LaSorda once at a meet & greet in San Antonio… “drunk as a skunk”. Him… not me.

Not sure what Haywood’s $ issues may be, but I find it interesting in this day, compared to a generation ago, the schools, all of them, are holding onto their former stars a lot less closely as they once did. UNC and Duke have produced dozens of lottery picks in this century, and I would have to look some of them up when looking at the retired jerseys now. Early leave may have something to do about it, but it seems fewer people make Kings of a Danny Green or Psycho T like they did a Kenny Smith or Johnny Dawkins.Maybe it’s LT syndrome…keep your distance because you never know what is going to be in the headlines next.Growing up, folks were taught David Thompson turned water to wine and Phil Ford fed 3000. Not so much anymore. At least away from board monkeys they don’t.

Wuffs will remember him with the same devotion that UNCers recall Marvin Austin.

NCSU68Grad

9 months ago

That line qualifies for the “Glad I was NOT drinking coffee” award. Priceless….did the runners use cash or PayPal or Gift Cards or Visa?

Former96Heel

9 months ago

I thought the same thing right after Marvin’s tweet…We (UNC) were this crooked, and had this much talent on both sides of the ball, and all we could get was a Tire Bowl appearance and 8-ish wins??? It was then I decided my money was not going to good use, and would never grace that institution again. Not that winning a trophy would have changed my opinion, but I felt like the robber who stole $32 from the convenience store. Neither noble, nor smart.

BobLee

9 months ago

There was no single AHAA Moment for me. The Total Absurdity of The Martin Report did coagulate all my observations over ten years. I appreciate that many do not share the conclusions you and I have reached… and never will. The “Braggin’ Rights” thing is too much a part of who / what they are.

BobLee, you missed a golden opportunity regarding Brandon Heywoods need for money. Just look at the title of your article. Thought you would hold N C State‘s feet to the fire a little more after a decade of their crowing about UNC CHEAT ( which we deserved). Now they need a new name, perhaps: N C ONTHETAKE. I agree when I get around to investigating Nike schools, no one in the triangle will be left standing.

Brandon has “a hooker problem” ?? My contacts around Chapel Hill aren’t what they used to be. Doesn’t the Felton kid also have sex-related issues? Does Roy remember “the Felton kid”?.I tried to allocate equal time to all three schools today. I realize there are those who count each word. Some Wuff loon is likely to blast me for “picking on them”..There was no need for Adidas to offer so much $$$ unless they were in a bidding war with “another shoe company”.

What the heck ever happened to Nancy Grace? Her “15 minutes” were up a decade ago. Ruth Sheehan & The N&O parted ways about 9 months after Duke Lacrosse. Ruth went to Law School locally. No idea what she has been doing post-Law School. Ruth and I actually became friends “back then”.

She was kinda psycho as I recall. Before TV fame I think she was an ADA in Atlanta or maybe a defense atty… and had a reputation as “eccentric”.

Zoot

9 months ago

She had a wee problem with not turning over exculpatory evidence that got her “Univited” to be a Prosecutor. A knack she carried over to her TV gig. Nancy liked to hang ’em high and long before the facts came in. She never did say anything about the Duke Case after it was exposed. Speaking of exposed, (segue) last we saw of her was when her boob popped out on “Dancing With the Stars.”